CHICAGO: A Hindu temple is being planned in a building on about 2.4 acres plot in the Chicago suburb Lake in the Hills that previously housed a Christian church.
This temple, being put forward by Bochasanwasi Shri Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS), plans to open daily and will be used for worship/prayer services, assemblies, ceremonies, religious classes, scripture reading, community activities, dining, charitable events, etc. It has been holding services at a rented place for about seven years, reports suggest.
Lake in the Hills officials are actively considering Hindu temple proposal. The planning and zoning commission has approved the project, now it’s up to the village board. If approved, the home for the new temple will be 1300 Cunat Ct. in the old church building. The temple won’t be anything near as lavish as the BAPS temple in Bartlett, which was reported to have cost about $30 million to build and includes immensely ornate marble work and spans 170,000 square feet.
Village of Lake in the Hills in McHenry County of Illinois, founded in 1952, has four lakes. Russ Ruzanski and Jennifer Clough are Village President and Administrator respectively.
BAPS, revealed by Bhagwan Swaminarayan in late 18th century in Gujarat (India), is a “socio-spiritual Hindu organization with its roots in the Vedas”. With international headquarters in Ahmadabad (India) and North American headquarters in Piscataway (New Jersey). BAPS claims to have 3,850 satsang centers, over a million followers, over 55,000 volunteers and over 1000 sadhus worldwide. His Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj (Swami Keshavjivandasji) is the present spiritual guru.
Commending BAPS efforts, Rajan Zed, President of Universal Society of Hinduism, observed that it was important to pass on Hindu spirituality, concepts and traditions to coming generations amidst so many distractions in the consumerist society and hoped that this temple complex would help in this direction.
Harish Rao
